Meet Maria from

Colombia.

Hi, my name is Maria.I am six years old and live in a country called Colombia in Latin America.

My family

I live with my grandparents, auntie and cousins. Our house is on our coffee farm high up inthe mountains.

My family

Our house and coffee farm is way up high in the hills. Can you spot my grandad and aunty in this picture?

My family

Here I am with my grandma helping to make lunch.

My family

By selling coffee beans we earn money to buy things we need, like water and electricity. Here is a coffee branch on our farm.

My family

Growing coffee can be a difficult way to earn money though. Sometimes bad weather or bugs mean the coffee plants cannot grow.

My family

Sometimes we find it really hard to get a good price for our coffee beans because so many other farmers are trying to sell their coffee beans at the same time.

My family

With the help of CAFOD, my grandparents and other farmers joined together to make a group called Eurocafé. Here we can share our business problems and learn from each other.

My family

Things have really changed since we joined Eurocafe.

My family

With the help of CAFOD we are learning new skills. We are more confident in our business, and have learnt new ways to look after our coffee.

My family

Now that we are part of Eurocafe we can get a fair price for our coffee. We are able to buy things we need, like food and books for school.

My family

We are really proud to be part of a coffee community – we work hard and have made good friends. Being part of Eurocafe means we can look forward to the future.

My family

I want to be a policewoman when I grow up. One day I would like to go to a different city and see what it’s like!

My family